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[color=darkgray][indent][indent]Fuck! What now? You do wonders to fuck up your own shit, Sonny Drake. But now you’ve done it and for what?

Yeah, for nothing. For...well, he didn’t know why he did it. Could be that SOnny had a few too many, but that wasn’t true because he only had one or two solo cups full of the spiked punch. That wasn’t enough to do any real damage. He was tipsy and had some hint of a lasting buzz, but nowhere close for him to feel as though the alcohol was to blame. So what? What was his reasoning? Sonny could blame it on his fear of Julie’s dad and feeling an obligation to remain by her side? Maybe it was how good of a time he was having. No huss or fuss - just a good time with his good friend.

As Sonny let out a stressed sigh, hearing  the backdrop of some song start to play, a clear as day sign that the DJ regained full control over his booth, it became more apparent than ever that Sonny had acted, yet again, impulsively. From where he stood and how Marisol exploded at him, he could see how she might see this as him being an asshole again. He could even see how others might see that as well. He pulled her away from what appeared to be her trying to get footage of the big moment and Sonny had obviously acted without thinking the entirety of what was the present situation and the consequences to come from it. 

And the more Sonny thought on it, the more he became convinced he had no fucking idea why he did this.

[color=ff8c00]“Yeah, I bet,”[/color] he said, rolling his eyes at Marisol, scoffing at her last comment. [color=ff8c00]“It didn’t seem like you were too happy to see me earlier, with how you and Rye were dancing.”[/color]

The young woman rolled her eyes. [color=brown]"I'm surprised you even managed to shift your complete attention away from Julie for the first time this week, even if it took Rye and I almost dry humping on the dancefloor for you to notice me,"[/color] she immediately argued back.

[color=ff8c00]“I was just doing what [i]you[/i] wanted to do. You know, the whole plan of setting those two up--”[/color] Sonny gestured to Rye and Julie. [color=ff8c00]“And trust me, if you met her father, you’d want to make sure she had a good time too instead of grilling me for not being a perfect boyfriend.”[/color] 

[color=brown]"So you're telling me that it's [i]my[/i] fault you've been blowing me off to hang out with Julie lately?"[/color] Marisol pressed on with a scowl, crossing her arms in front of her chest. [color=brown]"As far as I know, setting two people up doesn't require daily afternoon visits to each other's houses, a fitted suit, or an entire new wardrobe, unless [i]you're[/i] looking to be the person who gets set up with her."[/color]

[color=ff8c00]“Oh please!”[/color]

He was finding it more difficult to reason with her than he ever had to in the past. Now granted, Sonny knew that he wasn’t completely in the right here. What she said was true and he and Julie had seen more of each other but so fucking what! It wasn’t a crime to spend time with a friend and Marisol should know that. Sonny had never felt anything but friendship for Julie, but of all people, his [i]girlfriend[/i] thinks that?

Sonny rubbed his temples and shook his head. [color=ff8c00]“You’re seriously mad at me because I had to put in the hours for [i]your[/i] plan?!”[/color] Swallowing the words he had almost said, Sonny got at Mari’s eye level. [color=ff8c00]“Getting a new wardrobe took more time than I would’ve preferred. If I had my way, I would’ve worn the suit I wore to Homecoming, but Julie convinced me. And yeah, maybe I like the way I look tonight. Is that a crime?”[/color] He asked with an attitude.

Marisol could only scoff. [color=brown]“‘Put in the hours’? Son, all you had to do was fucking [i]ask[/i] her to the damn dance, show up to her house the day of to pick her up, bring her here, gas Ryland up to her a little bit, and then we would throw them together and watched it all play out. Whatever hours you say you put in for the sake of ‘[i]my plan[/i]’ are [i]your[/i] problem. Though, judging by how many of them you ‘put in’, I’m sure it was everything [i]but[/i] a problem.”[/color]

[color=ff8c00]“What is that supposed to mean?”[/color] Sonny asked, arching an eyebrow. [color=ff8c00]“Seriously, Mari: tell me what exactly is bothering you so much about how much time I spent with Julie?”[/color]

[color=brown]“Gee, I don’t know! Maybe it’s because you’ve always had a thing for the pretty popular girls?”[/color] the short girl spat, her eyes flashing with anger. [color=brown]“First it was Romina Stauffer back in elementary school. Then, you moved on to Serena Hotchkiss and Patricia Lowe in middle school. [i]Then[/i] you start messing around with the Palm Beach Princess Ariana Mossos herself for basically the entirety of the second semester of sophomore year- who popped your cherry and whose cherry you popped, I might add-, and who you [i]barely[/i] got over during junior year. And let’s not forget the time you made out with our lovely class president Victoire Bailey at that Diablo party last semester, [i]and[/i] the few weeks you dated her wannabe actress stepsister Nadia Aurelios behind my back not long after that. So, yeah: you can see why it’s not completely outlandish of me to jump to conclusions given your track record.”[/color]

“Congrats on knowing my romantic history!” Sonny clapped his hands for emphasis. “What’s next? Are you going to list off everyone I don’t like at this school?” He scoffed at her. “Or maybe you want to list off every person I haven’t talked to at this school? Really, that would be amazing.” He let his words sink in before laughing and cut it off into a flat expression. “I have [i]never[/i] wanted anything from Julie other than her friendship. She’s like a fucking sister to me, Mari, and the fact that you would even think that just shows how little respect you have for [i]me[/i].”

[color=brown]“Oh yeah? Wasn’t I ‘like a sister’ to you at some point too?”[/color] she definitely pointed out. [color=brown]“Don’t give me that ‘just a sister’ excuse. We both know that’s bullshit.”[/color]


[color=ff8c00]“Well it’s true. And we never were truly like brother and sister. If we were, last summer wouldn’t have never happened. So when I say Julie is like a sister, I mean she is to me what Drea is or what Nikki is to Kavi. Like, holy shit! The girls I’ve been involved with, regardless of the reason or nature, have always -- [i]always[/i] -- been when I was single. I don’t cheat and I never have cheated. I’m not Kavi!”[/color] While a part of him knew he should stop, he couldn’t, so he didn’t. [color=ff8c00]“And since we’re airing it all out there, the only reason I spent so much time with Julie this past week was because my mother felt it would be a good idea if I gave this whole date arrangement shit a -- and I’m quoting her -- ‘a genuine effort’!”[/color] His last words came out louder than he probably intended them to be.

When Marisol heard Sonny’s last statement, she pursed her lips into a straight line and nodded in bitter understanding. And although she should feel satisfaction at how everything made absolute sense now, it didn’t stop the ache in her chest at yet another confirmation of how everyone thought she wasn’t enough for her boyfriend. [color=brown]“[i]Of course[/i]...”[/color] she trailed off, clicking her tongue in disapproval. [color=brown]“Leave it to your mother to encourage her beloved little [i]Jackson Jr.[/i] end up with a prim and proper lady like her rather than a fucked up tomboy like me, right?”[/color] 

Sonny squinted at his girlfriend, head bobbing back slightly, and shook his head. [color=ff8c00]“What? No, that’s not it.”[/color] He wanted to make sure she knew that his mother never thought anything of the sort and to affirm this, he wanted to take her hand but after how she reacted when he grabbed her earlier, he just gave her a stern look. [color=ff8c00]“Listen: yeah, my mom has her reservations about me. But it’s not like she ever thought of you as less than or anything of the sort. So what if your clothes aren’t always matching or you don’t have perfect poise. No amount of increases in my allowance or new cars will change the fact that I love [i]you[/i] in that way, not Julie. And even if my mom doesn’t approve, she has no choice.”[/color]

In typical Mari fashion, instead of focusing on the [s]probably fake and highly questionable[/s] reassurance her boyfriend was offering her, her attention went to [i]another[/i] part of his speech. [color=brown]“Higher allowance? New car?”[/color] she repeated, visibly confused. [color=brown]“What are you even talking about?”[/color]

[color=ff8c00]“I, uh--”[/color]

Even before he realized what had left his mouth and the direction of this conversation that just seemed to be getting worse the longer it remained, Sonny knew that he fucked up. Just when things were going perfect in his life in the sense that he and Mari were finally moving past everything that threatened to tear them down last semester and he was actually starting to feel happy for once, this dance allowed the universe to throw him one curveball after the other, prompting him to wonder if he pissed someone off in his previous life and that’s why he was offered this unappetizing platter of shit pie. 

As he felt his throat getting dryer and dryer, Sonny coughed a few times and tried that again. [color=ff8c00]“My grades have been loads better lately, so she decided to reward me,”[/color] he shrugged, thinking nothing of it.

[color=brown]“[i]Really[/i]?”[/color] she asked him, eyebrow raised questioningly in a way he knew meant she thought he was full of shit. [color=brown]“What car did she get you? Because as far as I know you love your orange truck from hell more than me.”[/color]

[color=ff8c00]“Close,”[/color] he added with a half-grin. [color=ff8c00]“If only mom liked it as much as I do,”[/color] he rambled, scratching the back of his neck in an effort to stall. He knew regardless how he said it, it was very likely that Mari wouldn’t be happy about it. With a sigh, Sonny came out with it. [color=ff8c00]“Here’s the thing: she didn’t want me to pick up Julie in my truck, something about it being tacky or whatever...”[/color] He let out another sigh and continued, [color=ff8c00]“So she bought me that silver Audi that you might’ve noticed in the parking lot.”[/color] His stomach tightened up as the tension in the air suddenly became twice as thick.

[color=brown]“So you’re telling me that your mother bought you a brand new car straight out of the dealership just because she didn’t want you driving her majesty around in your truck?”[/color] the young woman inquired in outraged disbelief. Her voice and freshly balled-up fists were both shaking with anger now, and it was taking an outstanding amount of self-control for Mari to not flip out right then and there.

In addition to seeing that rare way her face scrunched up, Sonny noticed her fists were balled up. He knew she had a tendency to overreact but this was giving him war flashbacks to when she took a bat to Vic’s car. He didn’t think she would do the same to his Audi, but whenever Marisol let her anger get out of control, she became someone else - she became [i]something[/i] else. In whatever ditch effort he could muster, Sonny had to try and detonate this big bomb in a really small package. [color=ff8c00]“It’s not that big of a deal,” he retorted quickly, “It’s just a car--” [i]A really nice car[/i]. “--It doesn’t have to mean anything. So just take a breath…” [i]Before you use my face as a stress ball.[/i][/color]

[color=brown]"Are you really this stupid?!"[/color] the short girl cried out, her face getting red. [color=brown]"It's so fucking obvious that your mom doesn't like me-- has [i]never[/i] liked me-- and she'd rather you be with girls like Julie. And why not, right?! They're obviously the better choice for you! Any other polite, pretty priss out there is a hell of a lot better than the potty-mouth tomboy in your mother's eyes, and we both know I'll never be able to live up to that! So how about I just do the both of you a favor and fuck right off?!”[/color]

[color=ff8c00]“You’re twisting my words,”[/color] he sait swiftly, cutting her off. [color=ff8c00]“You seem to have this idiotic narrative that I like Julie or that my mom doesn’t like you. I honestly don’t know what ever gave you that idea, so allow me to paint you the picture of what’s true...”[/color] Sonny coughed and stared Mari down, knowing this was his only chance to get it right. [color=ff8c00]“I have never liked Julie like that. I will [i]never[/i] like Julie like that. Sure, maybe in some alternate reality where you and I aren’t madly in love and I was every bit the mommy’s little follower you think I am. Then, sure: I would be serenading her like Rye is. But news flash, Marisol!”[/color] He raised his voice, [color=ff8c00]“That’s [i]never[/i] going to happen. Despite any track record of mine suggesting otherwise, the only person I will ever see myself with is the idiot standing in front of me who needs to understand how much I love her!”[/color]

The beginning of Sonny’s monologue had Marisol poised and ready for a fight. She was about to interrupt her boyfriend and list all the different ways his mother’s behavior had given her the idea that she was considered inadequate for her son when he chose to stare her down. 

[color=brown]“You really mean that? Or are you just trying to placate me?”[/color] she grumbled, her eyes still locked on the ground. Marisol knew Sonny well enough to tell that he was being serious, but she still wanted to hear his confirmation.

[color=ff8c00]“Plac-what?”[/color] He asked, bearing a genuine confused, blank expression on his face.

Marisol couldn’t help but look up at him and roll her eyes. [color=brown]“It means to make someone less angry,”[/color] she clarified as the corners of her mouth turned upwards in a hint of a smile. [color=brown]“Jesus, Sonny, how did you even pass the vocabulary portion of the SAT’s?”[/color]

[color=ff8c00]“Bold of you to assume I even took them.”[/color] He remained silent for a few seconds. [color=ff8c00]“...don’t tell my mom I just told you that. I got her to finally get off my back about college and shit and i know she’ll give me one of her trademark lectures the minute she finds out.”[/color]

The girl’s mouth finally broke into a smile. [color=brown]“Cross my heart, hope to die,”[/color] she promised, holding a closed fist to the heart. [color=brown]“Though [i]you’ll[/i] be the one hoping to die after your mom eventually gets ahold of that bit of information…”[/color] she snickered.

Sonny’s response came in the form of a chuckle. He glanced away from Mari for a moment to see if Rye and Julie were grinding on the dancefloor but he couldn’t spot them. He frowned and took out his phone as it vibrated in his pocket and he saw the group text from the two of them, which quickly shifted Sonny’s mood swing from disappointed to satisfied. 

In the moment he read her message and the added bit from Rye, Sonny wanted to keep his grin but he honestly couldn’t believe how much of a dick he was. Of course, he was grateful that somehow he made it better with Mari, but as for Rye and Julie? Yeah, that something else altogether. Maybe if he didn’t have it in his head that he needed to be by Julie’s side to make the date go well then maybe Sonny wouldn’t have reacted so...aggressively when Rye made his move.

[color=ff8c00]“So, listen,”[/color] Sonny said, pocketing his phone, [color=ff8c00]“I know I’ve been a shit boyfriend tonight and, well, I, uh…”[/color] He rubbed the back of his head. Communication wasn’t his strong suit and he always struggled getting his point across, [color=ff8c00]“You know I suck at articulating myself but you wanna dance? I’m no good but they’re playing a dope song right now and I want to...make it up to you, that is. And I know how much you love it when I do this.”[/color] Sonny did his best attempt at a salsa hip shake, which looked awkward on him because of his slightly overweight figure and how out of practice he was. He certainly wasn’t going to win any dance competition with his hip shakes.

Marisol couldn’t help but snort. [color=brown]“Okay, first of all: don’t ever do that in public again,”[/color] she told him, her eyes sparkling in amusement at his terrible attempt at dancing. [color=brown]“And second, it hasn’t [i]all[/i] been your fault. I haven’t been the best of girlfriends tonight either, soooo… I’m sorry about everything I said before. You and Julie looked so good together and were having such a good time, and I know she’s totally your mom’s dream girl… So that shit kinda just… Messed with my head a bit. Guess I have some shit to work out still, right?”[/color] she laughed awkwardly, shaking her head.

Sonny had a poorly-timed joke ready, but then he noticed how uncharacteristically vulnerable Marisol was appearing, especially after she mentioned his mother and how she [i]might[/i] prefer Julie or at least, the type of girl Julie was. It made him think about a lot of things, some immediate and some not so immediate. Even after everything they both said and the actions that emphasized their words, Sonny could tell that under it all, what his mother did affected his girlfriend deeply. It was like her version of a scar that nobody could see but her. 

He grabbed her hand, squeezing it gently. [color=ff8c00]“It’s all good in the hood!”[/color] She shot her a rare cheerful grin. [color=ff8c00]“We’re imperfect for others, but together, we cancel each other’s shit out.”[/color]

[color=brown]“Bad for others but perfect for each other: going strong since the year 2000!”[/color] she laughed, closing the distance between them to wrap her slender arms around him in a tight hug. [color=brown]“I love you, dipshit. I hope you always remember that.”[/color]

He smiled and chuckled out a single laugh. [color=ff8c00]“Love you more, dumbass!”[/color] He nibbled lightly on her neck, holding her close to him so she couldn’t escape. A few seconds later, using his superior strength, he picked her up by the waist. [color=ff8c00]“The dance floor awaits!”[/color] he declared before dragging his gleeful girlfriend back to the dance floor.[/indent][/indent][/color]